Free as the Wind
by Bexi
Summary: [Complete One Shot] Ayeka finally has all she wants but is she willing to let go of that or will she make a sacrifice for her own happiness? Ayeka x Kamidake. Fluffy.


**Free as the Wind **

**A Tenchi fanfiction **

Written by Bexi

**Disclaimer**: Alas, I cannot say that I have any rights to the Tenchi characters, because if I did I would be rolling in the dough and Ayeka and Kamidake would be an official couple and all my fanfictions would be turned into high budget movies.

**Author's Notes**: I know what you're all thinking, "oh, it's only Bexi writing a new fanfiction, which, I might add, she won't finish it." But I really do want to finish my fics, I'm just slightly busy and this idea has been in my head for ages now. So bear with me. Besides, this is only going to be a short one shot.

**Free as the Wind **

The first princess of Jurai gazed towards the clear sky and sighed listlessly. She was standing over the lake in the middle of the shrine, the wind playing with her long violet hair but it didn't cause her gaze to falter. It seemed as if she was looking at something -- looking for something. In a way she was. In fourteen more days her family would be on planet Earth for another visit. She sighed again and closed her eyes. Her family. The very thought of them made her shudder. It wasn't that she didn't love her family. Au contraire, she loved them dearly. But they embarrassed her...

Bright pink hair and a funny voice popped into her head and her eyes shot open. Seriyo. The thought of that pompous man did indeed make her visibly shudder. What deranged surprises did her father have in mind this time?

It had been around two Earth years since her family's last surprise visit and a lot had chanced since then. Things that her family knew nothing of. Her heart was no longer chasing Tenchi around every corner of the shrine, which will relieve her father dearly. Tenchi had admitted to the whole household that his heart belonged to Ryoko. Surprisingly, Ayeka felt no bitterness towards the amber-eyed space pirate. That was because of an incident that occurred a month before that happened.

Ayeka smiled. It was that very incident that captured her very own heart, though it wasn't that soon. It took around a year for her to understand what it was telling her. The main reason it took so long was not the obvious reason that one would assume of the first princess of Jurai. The reason was because she had spent a lot of time and energy fighting over Tenchi that everyone was assuming that she truly was in love with the black-haired boy. What would they say if she told them that she was slowly falling out of love with Tenchi before she knew of him and Ryoko? So, she denied herself more than anyone else … letting Ryoko brag in a subtle way, but even the space pirate became sympathetic towards her after a couple of days. And the pirate was sympathetic when she and Tenchi told Ayeka. It didn't matter to her though because she had the memory of that incident still fresh in her mind…

_The princess grumbled as the rain started to fall harder from the sky. The Earth was beautiful indeed, but the weather she detested the most was rain. Maybe it was her own fault; she had wanted to get some more yarn to fix some clothes of Sasami's. It just happens that the colour she needed was currently out of stock and now she was stuck with nothing. _

_She shyly looked over towards the red-haired knight who had offered to accompany her to the market … the very same knight who was now drenched from head to toe and was now trying to wring out his hair. She watched him as he took out the band that held his hair in place. She had never seen him with his hair down and she noticed that it was longer than it seemed, as he always had it in a braid to keep it in place._

_A small smile formed on her beautiful face as she watched him carry on with the task, completely oblivious to her gaze. When he finally noticed that she was looking at him, his face was full of confusion as he blinked. _

_"What?" he asked, softly._

_"Nothing," she replied in a humour-filled tone. They were standing underneath a tree, which provided them with a little bit of shelter from the rain. "I'm sorry to have dragged you out in the rain with me, Kamidake," the princess sighed._

_Kamidake laughed, which caused Ayeka to look up. "It's perfectly all right, Princess Ayeka," he replied. "If it makes you feel any better, I happen to like the rain."_

_"Really?" Ayeka asked, stunned._

_"Nope, but it did make you feel a little bit better, didn't it?"_

_Ayeka laughed as a reply. She had never seen the knight being so open with anyone before, which made her feel happy. It was always Kamidake who was the silent one out of the two knights. Azaka had been a very lively person since day one, and very competitive when it came to playing video games with Sasami._

_"Obviously, something has brought you out of that serious shell," she voiced, hoping not to offend Kamidake._

_"I have a professional role to uphold … this does not leave either you nor I … deal?"_

_"Deal!" she smiled. _

_Ayeka was more than aware that Kamidake was doing this to cheer her up, and it was working, too. It didn't fully take her mind off the rain, but did ease the frustration. She continued to talk happily with the knight, laughing at the small things and listening to his laugh, keeping the sound inside her mind, just in case he reverted back to the solemn knight once they returned home. _

_The rain was slowly beginning to ease to a shower, but it would revert back to a downpour if they didn't hurry. Ayeka turned to suggest that they leave when she felt Kamidake press his lips to hers. It stunned her and was over as quickly as it was initiated. Ayeka remained in a state of complete shock as Kamidake pulled away and muttered apologies to her. He stood up and suggested they move before the rain started again, avoiding Ayeka's eyes at all cost._

_Ayeka finally stood herself and placed her fingers to her lips. A blush emerged on her face when she finally realised that Kamidake had kissed her. It was only a soft, innocent kiss, she told herself. Nothing more than a quick peck on the lips … but it only made the blush redden furthermore. Friends kiss all the time; she tried to reassure herself, though most of the time it's on the cheek, not lips. _

_Ayeka caught up with Kamidake, who still avoided her gaze, and told him that it was nothing to worry over. But he wasn't having any of it, he had kissed the princess and that just was not on! Not on at all… _

Yes, that kiss had been such a shock back then but when she thought about it, it wasn't so bad. After she got back to the house, things between her and Kamidake had been awkward and she wondered whether anyone else had noticed the tension. It was only after a long conversation that things were finally cleared and her and Kamidake went back to the way they were before. Though, she had asked the knight whether he could lighten up a little, saying that she enjoyed his company. He laughed and told her that he would try but expect no promises.

So that it was then. The kiss had been forgotten … though not by Ayeka. She couldn't forget what happened, no matter how hard she tried. She had wanted to know why he kissed her … her, of all people. Did he not see her as a bossy nuisance that he was forced to protect? Of course, he would never say that. It wasn't within his nature to say such hurtful things to anyone.

Was it because Ayeka had acted so laid back since then that Tenchi was able to get closer to Ryoko and realise what he felt for her?

Even when Tenchi and Ryoko broke the news to her, she was thinking about Kamidake's kiss … a month after it happened! It made her feel guilty. Tenchi was upset about breaking Ayeka's heart and all she could think of was what it would be like to kiss Kamidake again. True, she was upset that the man she assumed she had loved was choosing a lowly pirate over a royal princess. She disappeared to her shared room and demanded her solitude, which was granted. She sat on her futon and just thought for a long time. She had a cried when she thought that Tenchi had really thrown her aside. But this one thought came to her whenever she truly thought about it.

"Think about it, Ayeka, is it really love? I mean, the man you _love_ is telling you that he'd rather be with a wretched space pirate and all you can think about is what it's like to kiss another man. I know what I think, but when do you ever listen to me? Think about it, princess…"

And for once, Ayeka listened to her head and was forced to agree with it. If you truly love someone, you don't just fall out of love with them in the space of a month because of a little, insignificant kiss!

So that was it. Ayeka wasn't in love with Tenchi. _News of the century! Ayeka Jurai has finally gotten a grip on reality and is now living in the real world, _she could hear.

For the next couple of weeks everyone was walking on eggshells around her, and quite frankly, Ayeka was sick and tired of it. She took everyone into the lounge and told them that there was no reason for them to act the way they did around her. She told Ryoko and Tenchi that she didn't mind if they openly admitted how they felt in public, she wasn't going to break down into tears because they're kissing … like lovers do…

She could hear they're muttered voices. "_Oh, she's trying to put on a brave face for us all_," or "_she must still be in denial, of course it bothers her!_" They wouldn't stop and Ayeka was unsure whether she should tell them of the one person who was constantly on her mind -- _all because of a silly, little kiss_, she constantly reminded herself. What would they say? But she eventually gave in and told them that someone else had been on her mind recently and it wasn't Tenchi. She even admitted that she had kissed him a month before Tenchi told her of him and Ryoko, and she had just been unable to get him off her mind, even though the kiss was an accident and hadn't been mentioned since then.

As expected, the household was stunned and wondered which male in the household they were talking about. And, Ryoko being Ryoko…

"Noboyuki! Tenchi's dad! That's just gross, even for you, Ayeka!"

Ayeka's face fell pale at the very though and agreed with Ryoko for a change, that was gross! The others tried to figure who it could be, knowing of the men who it could not be. Ayeka thought it would be obvious … it was the one who was her physical age! Noboyuki … that just wasn't right. True, she had been engaged to Yosho, but that was long over. Azaka? Nope! So there was only one person left, it wasn't such a difficult mystery to solve, was it?

He was the only one who wasn't it in the room, all the other men being under the scrutiny of everyone, especially Ryoko. But the penny finally dropped when Kamidake walked in and everyone understood. Ayeka blushed and felt sorry for the poor knight, having the whole household staring at him. They knew the reason why, but Kamidake was left outside in the cold to the real reasons.

Ayeka ran out, red face as Ryoko said something in her crude humour, and she was certain that Kamidake followed soon afterwards.

The princess laughed at the memory, but at the time she had been completely humiliated and wanted to do nothing more than to crawl under a huge rock and pray to Tsunami that nobody would every bother her again.

And the rest was history to her.

But would it be history when her family arrived? she wondered. Her rose-coloured eyes fluttered open when she heard leaves rustle and twigs breaking and the princess smiled when she felt a pair of strong arms wrap securely around her waist.

"I was wondering where you had gotten to," Kamidake said, resting his head on Ayeka's shoulder and softly kissing her cheek. "Penny for your thoughts?" he offered, softly.

Ayeka leaned into Kamidake's embrace and placed her hands on his. "I was just thinking," she answered him. "…About my family…"

"Oh," he mumbled.

Ayeka laughed. "My sentiments exactly. They don't know about you and I … as far as my family is concerned, I'm still fighting with Ryoko over Tenchi's affection. I don't want you to be taken from me," she sighed.

"Hey, I'm not going anywhere, princess," he reassured. "They'll have to drag me away kicking and screaming."

"I'd like that," she sniggered. "I'd like that a lot. I just wish it didn't have to be this way."

Kamidake kissed her again and tilted her head to one side so he had full access to her neck. He planted soft kisses along her neck, feeling her relax drastically as he nipped and kissed, grazing his teeth over the delicate flesh. "If I could, I'd whisk you away right now."

"Where would we go?" she enquired, groaning as Kamidake stopped the attack on her neck.

"Wherever you want. Well just go to the first planet that catches our fancy -- just you and me, Ayeka. We'll have a house where we'll live," he said, and added, "with a garden … a large garden for you."

Ayeka closed her eyes, imagining the fantasy in her head. "That sounds wonderful," she spoke in a dreamily tone. Suddenly, she turned and threw her arms around Kamidake's neck. "Let's do it!" she squealed.

"Huh?"

"Let's leave, like you said. Go to another planet, live life to the fullest … just the two of us."

Kamidake sniggered and shook his head. "Ayeka, darling, that was just one of those farfetched thoughts. You know we can't just up and leave."

"Why can we not? All my life I've had to live with what my family expects of me, never being able to make my own choices. Sometimes I don't want to be a princess, I just want to live my life … with you by my side."

"And I want nothing more than to make your dream come true."

The violet-haired princess looked deep into Kamidake's light eyes, serious. "Then, please, let's go. We'll leave a note explaining to everyone, to Sasami and my family. But please, Kamidake, please…"

"You're serious, aren't you?" he breathed. Ayeka nodded. "We can't, Ayeka, we just can't. You're the first crowned princess of Jurai and I'm your knight … we can't just abandon our duties."

Ayeka smiled, quickly capturing Kamidake's lips on her own. She ran her hands through his hair, using her fingers to delicately undo the braid so his red tresses fell into a normal ponytail. "Just you and me," she whispered after she pulled from the kiss.

"All right, let's just say that if there is a possibility that it could happen … how are we going to do it? Were exactly are we going to find transport that we can use? And we're not really the type of people who stand well in the crowd … everyone knows you."

"We can make sacrifices… I could get my hair cut, we can change our names -- make a completely new life for ourselves. Work for a living. I would make those types of sacrifices for you, Kamidake."

"How?" the knight asked her, bluntly.

"I think we should ask Washu. Maybe she can help us, I don't know."

Kamidake shook his head and smiled, moving forward to lightly kiss Ayeka's nose. "It's not within my nature to refuse a direct order from the royal family, now, is it?"

The corners of the princess's mouth curled into a large grin and her eyes sparkled. "Really?"

"Really," he laughed.

Ayeka felt her heart pound harder. She was really going to do this, wasn't she? She was really going to run away from being a princess … all for the man she loved. And visa versa. Kamidake was willing to leave his position as knight to be with her. Both were going to be giving up a great deal and Ayeka knew her father would stop at nothing to find her and bring her home -- to Jurai. But she would not let him, not this time. This time her life would not be mapped out for her. She would live each day as it goes … just her and Kamidake.

---

Sasami hummed as she skipped around the house. It was almost breakfast time and she needed to make sure everyone was up. There was only seven more days until her family arrived and she was excited. She missed her mother and father dearly and could not wait to see both of them again. The blue-haired princess began to cook breakfast, and took out several carrots for Ryo-Ohki, who jumped off her head and noisily ate them.

She took out enough bowls for everyone and rang the bell to make sure everyone was here. She carefully placed the bowls around the table and watched as everyone walked in. Ryoko came in with her head on Tenchi's shoulder. Noboyuki was reading the newspaper and Katsuhito was busy talking with Azaka.

Sasami looked around, noticing the people who were missing from the table. "Ayeka and Kamidake aren't here, I wonder what could have kept them," she wondered, placing her hands on her chin.

Ryoko grinned wickedly. "Maybe they didn't hear the bell … maybe they're a little … busy … if you know what I mean?"

Tenchi sighed. "Ryoko, not at the table, please."

"I was only stating a possibility."

Just then Washu walked in, hands behind her back. The expression on her face was crossed between sombreness and excitement.

"What's with you, Washu?" Ryoko asked, taking her bowl of rice and hungrily devouring it.

"They're gone," she said, the corners of her lips turning into a small grin.

"What do you mean, Washu?" Tenchi replied.

The small scientist walked in and sat down, hands still hidden. "I mean they're gone -- Ayeka and Kamidake. They left yesterday, and no, I don't know where they are."

"Washu, what are you talking about? Where's my sister?"

Washu brought her hands up and handed Sasami a letter. The little girl took the letter and looked questioningly at Washu. Slowly, she opened the envelope and took out the letter, instantly recognising the neat handwriting to be that of her sister. The others watched her with intense eyes as she began to read aloud.

"'_Dear Sasami,_

_If you are reading this then I guess you know that Kamidake and I have left. I'm sorry to do this to you, Sasami, but I felt that I have no other choice. You see, Mother and Father will be coming to Earth in eight days and I think you know what that means? You know, as well as I, that Father would never allow me to carry on having a relationship with Kamidake because he is not of royal blood, but I love him and I don't want to have to leave him. _

_Please Sasami, don't see this as me abandoning you. You're my little sister and I love you dearly … I hope that you will see that being with Kamidake makes me happy. One day I will return, and hopefully Father will have accepted that I am not going to give up Kamidake. I don't want to be under his thumb … I want to be free as the wind and do as I dream. _

_I don't want you to worry about me, Sasami; after all, I have my white knight in shining armour to protect me._

_I love you with all my heart and one day I will return, I promise you that._

_Dear Washu,_

_We both wish to thank you with all our hearts, because without you, we would still be on planet Earth. I'm glad that you understood when we came to you. Kamidake was looking on the downside to this whole idea, saying that it wasn't wise for me to get my hopes up, but I hoped that you would help -- and you did. Thank you. I don't know how I will ever repay you. _

_I only hope that by asking of so much, you won't get into any trouble with my father … but I'm sure if you do, you'll figure someway of getting out of it … you always do. You're always the one that we all go to when we have a problem that we don't know how to fix. Small things to fixing the TV or more larger, important things._

_You're a lifesaver. Thank you again, Miss Washu._

_Dear Ryoko,_

_Yes, I ever decided to add you to this note. A little word, this isn't the last you'll see of me, space pirate. Despite all the fighting we did over Tenchi, I really don't see the point in fighting with you anymore … except when you just plainly annoy me, which you do quite a lot. You may not like to hear this as much as I … but you've been a good friend to me … thank you. Though, I'm not sure what I should be thanking you for…_

_Yes._

_Yes, I do. I don't know what would have happened if you did not fight with me over Tenchi. I may not have fallen in love with Kamidake and you'd be stuck with me … fighting over small things … probably you trying to steal half of my breakfast. Honestly, Ryoko, how can you eat so much?_

_Well, anyway. Thank you for being a friend and I expect you to look out for Sasami, if not … well, you don't want to know what'll happen if I find out you haven't. But, I know that you have a heart and you care for my sister … please, look out for her._

_Dear Tenchi,_

_Well, what can I say? You've been a true friend and I'm sorry if I have caused you any trouble while I have been staying here. I'd like to thank all of you for letting us stay there … not every person would be as kind and understanding as you. You and your father have been very nice … opening your home to us. I hope my father doesn't give you too much hassle when he comes to visit. I've written a separate letter that I would like you to give to my family. Could I ask that of you? You're so sweet, Tenchi. You're the most kind-hearted, sweet natured, polite and loving person I have ever met. I can't say much more, really I can't … writing all these nice things about you is making Kamidake jealous, which is rather amusing. _

_I'm getting the evil eye now, so I'd better stop before this trip is cancelled._

_Thanks for everything._

_Dear Azaka,_

_I know you, too, will look out for my sister … not just because you see it as a duty, but also because you want to. Thank you so much._

_Kamidake says that he wants to thank you for all you've done for him. I haven't a clue what he is talking about, but he says you know. He says that you are like a father to him, and if it weren't for you, he wouldn't have even considered becoming a knight. So I guess that means if it weren't for you, I would never have met him. Thank you. _

_We would both like to thank all of you, from the bottom of our hearts. For all you've done. I love each and every one of you._

_Thank you._

_Yours truly,_

_Ayeka and Kamidake'_

And that's it. My sister is gone … really gone this time," Sasami mused.

Tenchi walked over and rested his hands on the young child's shoulders. "I know you must be feeling sad, Sasami, but Ayeka--"

"I'm not sad, Tenchi," she said, looking up and smiling as she placed the letter down for whoever to see. "I'm happy for Ayeka. She's my sister and I love her … I want her to be happy and I know that Kamidake will make her happy. And if Ayeka is happy, then so am I."

"Well said, Sasami," Tenchi smiled, stealing a quick glance at the letter. What WOULD he say to the royal family?

**THE END **

**Author's Notes: **Well, that was only going to be a small one shot, but it's around 7 pages … I'm sitting up writing this when I should be doing assignments. Naughty me! I wanted to write another Kamidake/Ayeka fic, but I've always wanted to do a short fic … so here it is.

Hope you enjoyed it.

**Bexi **

**-**

**Updated:** 06.01.05

**- **


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